


What Washington Saw

by nonbinarycoded



Series: 3 and a Half Minutes in Heaven [1]
Category: Red vs. Blue
Genre: Angst, Fluff, M/M, au where the portal shows someone their personal heaven instead of hell, but also kinda, idk if you ignore that this is emotionally wrecking washington it's really very sweet, really go check out the post i linked the idea is gr9 i want to write the rest of those
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-30
Updated: 2015-08-30
Packaged: 2018-04-18 01:09:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,481
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4686596
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nonbinarycoded/pseuds/nonbinarycoded
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Washington decides to enter the portal to test whether or not he's the warrior it's looking for. </p>
<p>AU in which, instead of showing the soldier a test of will, the temple portal shows them everything they've ever wanted. Whoever comes out of that willingly is a true warrior.</p>
            </blockquote>





	What Washington Saw

**Author's Note:**

> Credit to this amazing idea for an AU goes to mahoushoujogrimchan on Tumblr! They detail what many of the other characters see in that portal in this post ( http://mahoushoujogrimchan.tumblr.com/post/127354477822/thought ) and if this story is well received I'd like to write the rest of the characters' perspectives as well!

Wash's insides twisted as he stared at the portal. He wasn't sure what it was supposed to show those who entered, but if it was meant to reveal a "true warrior" it had to have been something awful, a test of strength or of skill or of willpower, what if it showed him what he feared most or made him relive something awful, he wasn't ready to relive Epsilon, he wasn't _ready--_

He pushed down the anxiety knotting his gut and stepped forward.

It was less like stepping through a doorway and more like stepping off a cliff. Afterward he wondered what he would have seen had he opened his eyes, but while in the portal he was busy with screaming and flailing madly trying to catch hold of something. The falling sensation might have only lasted a few seconds, but it felt like it lasted hours, and it crossed Wash's mind that maybe this was the test. Was this the test? This couldn't be it, could it? Was the test to see who'd come out of it without being scared? Wash may have already failed if the test was to see who could make it through this without wetting their-

He didn't have time to finish that thought, as the feeling of slamming full speed into something soft knocked both his train of thought and his breath from him. He struggled for breath, his whole body jolting and his eyes wide as he scrambled to get a firm grip on...

...Why was he holding the arms of an armchair?

He forced his breathing to slow and screwed his eyes shut, keeping his body tense and prepared for anything. He had to keep in mind that this was a simulation, this wasn't real, he couldn't get distracted by the armchair just because it threw him off, or by the quiet sound of rain outside, or by the cat just because it was being noisy.

It occurred to him that maybe the cat was just slightly out of the ordinary.

He opened his eyes just in time to be startled again when an extremely disgruntled, extremely _large_ Siamese cat leaped up into his lap and settled down. Almost without thinking, he reached down to pet it. Wasn't he supposed to be watching out for something? He'd been focusing on something before, but he couldn't remember what it had been. He settled for petting the cat while staring around the room. It all seemed off for a reason he couldn't put his finger on. This was his home, why did it seem so strange to him?

He noticed a book he'd knocked to the floor in front of his chair and realized that must have been what he was focusing on. He would have reached down for it, but the cat- now purring- had him effectively trapped where he was. It was nearly asleep in his lap already and he wasn't about to wake it up for a book, so he leaned his head against the back of the chair and made himself comfortable as well.

The nagging feeling that something was wrong wouldn't go away, and he lost himself in his thoughts trying to figure out why exactly things seemed wrong. Or, at least, he _tried_ to lose himself in those thoughts. Instead, he quickly became rather lost in how soft his chair was, and just how comfortable he was, and just how easy it would be for him to fall asleep right there.

Quiet, rolling thunder from outside shook him from this and forced his eyes open. The thunder wasn't quite loud enough to mask the sound of a door opening down a hall behind him, and he turned his head in time to see-

He wasn't sure why seeing Maine stumbling sleepily towards the kitchen caused such a strong reaction in him, but Wash felt like he was about to cry. Maine had only been in their room finishing up some work, but Wash felt like he hadn't seen him in years. He felt like he hadn't seen him this relaxed in even longer. He nudged the cat from his lap, rose, and all but threw himself at Maine, clinging to him and burying his face in the other's chest.

Maine, obviously confused but more than happy to go along with it, hugged Wash back before pulling away slightly so they could see each other's faces. “Are you okay?” he asked, and Wash found himself at a loss for words. He didn't know why; it hadn't been very long since he'd seen Maine last, but for some reason the simple question made him swallow back tears before nodding and grinning.

“I just-- missed you,” Wash found himself saying for a reason unknown to even him. Maine let out a quiet laugh, pulling Wash in for a quick kiss.

“I was only working. Help me make dinner?”

“Isn't it your turn?” Wash asked, and Maine shot him a look he immediately read as _I'll help next time you order takeout._ “Fine, fine, I'll help.” Wash took Maine's hand and let himself be led to the kitchen, where he leaned himself up against the counter and watched Maine pull out ingredients from the fridge. Staring at the back of Maine's head, he couldn't help but think it looked rather... blank. He pushed the strange thought from his head as quickly as it'd arrived and chose to move to the window instead.

“God, it's pouring out... Didn't we have to go see North and South later? Think we'll have to do it another time?” Wash asked, staring at the rapidly growing puddles threatening to spill over the top of the curb. He jumped slightly when he felt Maine behind him, wrapping arms around his waist, but he relaxed once he remembered who it was.

“Not sure. Maybe. They'll call,” Maine said, and Wash nodded, resting his head back against Maine's shoulder. After a moment, Maine pulled Wash away towards the stove again so they could cook.

They spent the evening cooking together. It admittedly didn't come out as good as it could have, but they were both happy with it, and ate together in a comfortable near-silence. Wash loved how routine and domestic it all felt; he loved how _normal_ it was. Just as he was finishing his dinner, Maine looked up at him and said something he didn't understand.

“I-- Maine, what?”

“I said you can't stay here. You need to go back now.” With the second sentence, Maine's voice began to shift- it no longer sounded like him. Instead it was deeper, more gravelly, almost... mechanical?

When Wash recognized it, he pushed himself back from the table, away from Maine.

“No-- No, I can't go back, what do- What do you mean go _back_?” he asked frantically, but he knew what going back meant. He remembered all at once that this wasn't real, that this was a test, that Maine wasn't alive that he couldn't have this life that he was still a soldier that he wasn't home he wasn't home _he wasn't home-_

Tears blurred his vision, and when he stood he felt sick. He thought the ground was tilting beneath him until it disappeared outright, and he was back hurtling through whatever hell he'd been in when he first stepped into the portal. The return journey was much shorter than his arrival, and he was painfully aware of every second of it. He screamed the whole way back, and it wasn't out of fear of falling.

The portal launched him out and sent him tumbling across the ground, and when he came to a stop he didn't have the strength to rise. He was still screaming at the AI, at the simulation, at Maine-- Everyone he could think of and everyone that slipped his mind. _“BRING ME BACK--_ No, NO, I WANT TO GO _BACK-”_

Someone tried to help him up. Perhaps it was Carolina, perhaps it was Tucker. Perhaps it didn't matter. Wash shoved their arms away and curled in on himself, sobbing. _“I want to go back-_ You can't _take_ that from me, not _again-”_

Between muttering he caught bits of conversation from the people around him. He'd only been in the portal for 3 and a half minutes. 3 and a half minutes had shown him that, had shown him everything he'd dreamed of having since before the project even began to fall apart.

He'd had everything he'd ever dreamed of taken away from him a second time in just 3 and a half short minutes.

He curled up more, clinging to himself as if he could hold himself together if he just hung on tight. He'd stopped screaming, instead muttering, “I want to go back... Don't take this away again, _please_ let me go back,” over and over. Nobody tried to help him rise again.


End file.
